We Are Amused
SupperClub Middle East is the world’s premium culinary and lifestyle concierge as seen on Travel Markets, UA News 247, Business News, Gulf News etcetera. Established in UAE in 2020, three years later SupperClub expanded into Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia. Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, South Africa and Turkey all then came on board. In 2026, the company now has a strong presence in Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Malaysia, Singapore, USA and UK. Global expansion continues at pace.
How does it work? Members access the SupperClub app and view offers in their region of choice, place a booking request, the selected venue receives an email, and the members pay at the venue with discount automatically deducted. The WhatsApp concierge is on it like a Bentley bonnet. We’re constantly amazed at the millisecond response rate. It’s such a discreet and seamless service. This is really all about luxury positioning for us higher disposable income individuals. They’ve got it sorted.
There are three tiers of membership: Gold, Diamond and Platinum. Booking credit varies while all have unlimited reservations and guests as well as that beloved dedicated WhatsApp concierge. Diamond and Platinum have 12 months access to offers; Gold has six months. Platinum includes a generous restaurant spend. Exclusive offers cover food and beverage; spa and health club access; fitness and wellness packages; and crafted coffee. SupperClub’s growth involves ultra high profile partnerships with Adnoc, Emirates Skywards, HSBC, MasterCard, Samsung and Virgin.
“We’re already in Singapore, we’re already in Thailand, we’re looking at Japan,” co founder Muna Mustafa tells us (her business partner is Mehreen Omar). “The expansion is ongoing! SupperClub is also marketed through the Visa Airport Companion app which just recently launched. So this is really exciting because for the first time with Visa, restaurants are going to get visibility direct to consumers on the app. This ability to communicate directly with guests is another boost of visibility for our restaurants and it’s all about location based marketing.” No codes; real benefits.
As a successful entrepreneur, Muna is willing to share lessons learned. Her key guidelines include leveraging industry insights and market experience. “Our understanding of the hospitality industry, consumers, sector insights and customer pain points was a huge advantage in a crowded marketplace.” She also advocates taking a hands on approach from day one and creating the first proof of concept. “We built a hollow minimum viable product to sell our concept and get business of the ground. Focus on progress not perfection.” Pivoting in response to market dynamics and having a strong hold on performance metrics are two more of Muna’s key guidelines.
Many of the restaurants available through SupperClub are Michelin starred. We discuss the merits of the French grading system with Muna. “I love it!” she confides. “My favourite thing is please tell me in what order I should eat the food so that I don’t have to think of that! It never gets old.” Exactly a century ago the first Michelin Star was awarded (Georges Blanc, Vonnas). But it wasn’t until 1974 that Michelin came to Britain. Meals are judged on five criteria: quality of ingredients; mastery of gastronomic techniques; harmony of flavours; personality and emotion conveyed by the chef in the food; and consistency across both the menu and various visits.
One Michelin star is for a very good restaurant in its own category and worth a stop. Two stars is for excellent cooking and worth a detour. Three stars is for exceptional cuisine and worth a special journey. Musing where to go for Saturday lunch doesn’t take long when we realise Muse is on the SupperClub menu. Tom Aikens’ intimate fine dining experience in an exquisite Belgravia mews was barely open before it snapped up a Michelin star. The Chef has form: at 26 he was the youngest ever British chef to be awarded two Michelin stars (Pied-à-Terre, Fitzrovia).
Interior designer Rebecca Körner’s lively hallmarks – abundance of colour, use of eclecticism and fluidity of shape – are evident in fuchsia walls, contemporary design in a period building, and lagoon shaped mirrors. The same hallmarks could be applied to the most marvellous six course tasting menu – pinkish reddish rhubarb, fusing the best of British and finest of French cuisine ideas, and the curves and curls of Tom’s culinary art. “Ever since childhood I’ve been drawn to the unknown,” says Tom, “the thrill of a surprise, the joy of a guessing game, the kind of moment that leaves you speechless. This menu is shaped by that same spirit. You’ll find hints, clues and personal anecdotes woven throughout, each one echoing a chapter from my life and career.”
Are you ready? Tom gives the lowdown on each course. Forever Picking, “Snacks inspired by the seasons. This stems from my recollections of being in the garden with my mother and picking anything that was edible.” Custard, mullet and Montgomery cheese grand amuse bouches are sprinkled with edible flowers from Nurtured in Norfolk. Making and Breaking, “The comfort and satisfaction I get from bread comes from many memories along the way. To me, it means comfort, satisfaction, sharing, connection, love and of course the joy you receive from the actual making and eating of bread.” Leek, marmite and fermented butters accompany treacle flavoured bread. Just Down the Road: ricotta, blood orange, bitter leaves, “Many miles have been travelled and countless hours have been spent during my ongoing quest to find the very best of British producers to supply Muse with ingredients. We celebrate Old Hall Farm as one of them because it’s just down the road from where I grew up in Norfolk.” Three down three to go.
Never Ending Time: cuttlefish, turnip, shiso, “However simple a dish may look, the time it takes to prepare it can go unnoticed. I would always say savour, don’t devour. Many hours disappear in the preparing, cooking and perfecting of the cuttlefish.” The Love Affair: pigeon, bourguignon, wild garlic, “France is very close to my heart. I have spent years in the middle of France as well as the wine regions of the south and the Capital, slowly but surely developing my love affair with food and France. This continued working alongside a few great French chefs. This is my ode to France.” We swap this for an intriguing pescatarian option. Far Too Tempting: rhubarb, custard, ginger, “A love for sweet and sour stems from some of my favourite childhood treats including old fashioned fruit salad chew sweets, moon dust and sticks of rhubarb picked from my mother’s garden and dipped in sugar. This is nostalgic tastes from the past turned into something deliciously refreshing.” Six of the best. Make that six and a half: chocolate and honeycomb canapés end the lunch with aplomb.
Our inner oenophiles are more than satisfied: as SupperClub guests we’re treated to William Saintot Champagne. The well informed sommelier successfully tempts us with Ktima Gerovassiliou 2024, Greek rather than our usual French Viognier. She explains, “It’s rounder, less aromatic.” Our waitress has done her homework and discusses a mutual interest of architecture and travel. “Malaysia is a must,” she advocates, “you have to visit the scenic Tioman Island and the traditional stone buildings of Sarawak in northwest Borneo.”
Ding-a-ling. Greeted by name at the front door we were whisked up the stairs to sit at the bar opposite five chefs at work. This is intimate dining: six bar stools, two snugs and three two seater tables in a space five metres wide by four metres deep. The downstairs lounge and bar with its impressive lime green Brionvega Radiofonografo (an industrial style music system designed in 1965 by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni) have the same footprint. The top floor of this cute corner mews house contains the restaurant office. A Bibendum maquette takes pride of place on the first floor bar.
“I am a muse, not a mistress,” sings Marianne Faithfull, no mere bauble, in Sliding Through Life on Charm on her masterpiece album Kissin’ Time (2000). “I wonder why the schools don’t teach anything useful nowadays?” she ponders. “Like how to fall from grace and slide with elegance from a pedestal.” Tom Aikens doesn’t need to worry – he continues to slide through life on charm. And running a very good restaurant in its own category which is worth a stop. In our experienced view, Muse is worth a detour. Or even a special journey.
And now for another Borneo. We are delighted that the British Government’s Office for Place has chosen us as one of the main sources for its publication International Design Codes (2024). This guide for local authorities and property developers uses case studies to provide lessons for new schemes and districts. One of the case studies is square kilometres ahead of the rest: our Amsterdam favourite, Borneo Sporenburg.
Hilton is wonderful whether en route (Heathrow London) or very much arrived (Waldorf Astoria Beijing) or on television (Kathy Hilton on Housewives of Beverly Hills). So an invitation to lunch at the five star Trafalgar St James Hotel, part of the Hilton Curio Collection, was an easy yes. Even better, the hotel’s Rockwell Bistro and Wine Bar is the chicest place to drink and dine on Trafalgar Square. Plus it’s a croissant’s throw from Buckingham Palace, Downing Street and the River Thames.
“Another key feature of our platform,” she explains, “is that when a SupperClub member books for guests the discount applies to every person. Imagine a table of 10 with only one person being a SupperClub member yet the discount is given to the entire group. When the bill arrives, the SupperClub discounted price is automatically applied to the bill without a discussion, providing the smooth discreet experience our clients have been craving.” Lunch at Rockwell Bistro and Wine Bar is – as Mehreen foretells – a smooth discreet experience.
